Early Riser
by HecateA
Summary: On top of being a man with a plan, James is also typically up at the crack of dawn. It makes him particularly good at surprises. Happy Mother's Day! Oneshot.


**Author's Note: **This is the first Mother's Day that I'm away from my mum for, and it's very, very strange even if I've been a good child who has planned ahead for her. So here's to the moms! Even if you had salaries, you wouldn't get paid enough. Here's to the women who have stepped in for those without mothers, and here's to those who don't celebrate Mother's Day too.

**Disclaimer: **The following characters belong to J.K. Rowling, and this story derives from her original works, storylines, and world. Please do not sue me, I can barely pay tuition.

**Warnings: **N/A

* * *

**Stacked with: **MC4A; Shower of Words; Shipping Wars

**Individual Challenge(s): **Gryffindor MC (x2); Neurodivergent; In a Flash; Brush; Seeds; Spring Rain

**Representation(s): **Mother's Day; ADHD James Potter

**Bonus challenge(s): **Delicious Lie; Mouth of Babes; Chorus (Not a Lamp)

**Tertiary bonus challenge(s):** NA

**Word count: **892

* * *

**_Shipping War entry information:_**

**Ship (Team): **Lily Evans and James Potter (Patronus Pair)

**List (Prompt):** Big List (Flowers)

* * *

**Early Riser**

It had been a long time since Lily had last woken up alone. Well, relatively speaking. James was an early riser—and by early, she meant _sunrise. _If the sun was up and at it, then so was James Potter. An admirable quality in a Quidditch captain and mischief maker, though he'd very quickly had to learn to be quieter on his way in and out of bed. Early in their marriage, she'd gotten used to waking up without him and finding him lounging on the porch or showering after a run or downing cups of coffee and scanning _The Prophet _in the kitchen. Then, as it turned out, the power of a very squiggly infant in all of its unpredictably whims and glory had been enough to snap James out of his inhuman sleeping schedule into, well, no sleeping schedule at all.

She rubbed at her eyes and turned to look at her nightstand, to check on the time. The clock and the teetering pile of books she'd been reading were obscured by a vase of four sunflowers.

She smiled, slipping out of bed and into a night robe. She twisted her hair up into a bun and brought the flowers with her. She quickly peaked into Harry's room on her way to the stairs and was unsurprised to find its curtains drawn wide open and the crib empty. There was, however, another sunflower which she added to the bouquet. There were more on the stairs, which she poked into the bouquet one at a time, and more on the table near the front door where they left their keys and mail. Faint music came from the kitchen in the back of the cottage.

She paused as she looked into the kitchen and leaned against the doorframe with a smile teasing her lips. James was standing by the stove, humming to himself as he rummaged around. He had Harry tied to his bare chest in a sling, and the baby was chewing the latest dog plushie that Sirius had gifted him. He was looking around with those big curious eyes and when he saw her, he started garbling, which prompted James to turn around. He grinned at her.

"Good morning, beautiful," he said.

"Good morning, handsome," she replied, putting the vase down by the table so that she could cross the kitchen and kiss him. He tasted like sticky sweet syrup and the good, strong coffee they saved for post-full moon Remus and special occasions.

"And good morning to you too, sweetheart," she said kissing Harry's head. He was in something of a windmill phase, and one of his little hands caught a strand of Lily's hair. When he laughed, she couldn't help but laugh back before prying his little fingers away.

"Harry actually has something else to tell you," James said. He and the baby held eye contact for a few seconds of silence. "That's so weird, he was saying it just before he got here…"

Lily laughed. They were still waiting on a first word.

"Oh well," James said. He kissed her forehead again. "Happy First Mother's Day."

"Thank you," Lily said. She wrapped an arm around him, resting her hand on the small of his back, and kept another playing with Harry's hair. "Is that why I get flowers?"

"You got flowers because you deserve flowers always, but that would be bad for the Earth," James said. "You're getting waffles _and _pancakes _and _eggs _and _bacon specifically because it's Mother's Day, though."

The stove beeped.

"And that would be cake. But for later, because we have to set a good example for Harry and avoid eating cake before 9:00 a.m. if we're really going to go ahead and pretend that we're adults."

"Naturally," Lily smiled.

"It was Harry's idea," James promised.

"Such a bright boy."

"Gets that from his Mum," James said. He ruffled her hair before turning back to the waffle iron, and then handed Lily a cup of hot chocolate.

"Do I get to hold my son on Mother's Day too?"

"I suppose I'll share. Give me a second to flip these pancakes," James said. Lily sat at the table with her cup and James passed over Harry, who happily cooed on her lap before latching onto her hair again. James just smiled at her for a beat.

"What is it?" Lily asked.

"I've always known I loved you, but I never imagined what it would be like to love you because you're the mother of my child," James said. "And it's amazing. That's all."

Lily wrapped her arms around Harry, and rested her cheek against his hair.

"He makes it really easy to love him," she said. Even if her son was in a very, very difficult position in a very, very scary world. She wouldn't have it any other way, because a simpler and easier life may not include Harry, may not include James, may not include that flood of yellow flowers, and may not include the delicious smells filling the kitchen. And this moment meant everything to her.

"You're also amazing," James said. "Like these pancakes will be if I don't burn them."


End file.
